Biography

Andreas Ludwig Priwin, 6 April 1929, Berlin, Germany. After studying music in Berlin and Paris, Previn moved to the USA in 1938 when his family emigrated. Resident in Los Angeles, he continued his studies and while still at school worked as a jazz pianist and as an arranger in the film studios. From the mid-40s he made records with some measure of success, but it was in the middle of the following decade that he achieved his greatest renown. The breakthrough came with a series of jazz albums with Shelly Manne, the first of which featured music from the popular show My Fair Lady. Previn recorded with lyricist Dory Langdon, whom he later married. The marriage broke up in 1965 and was controversially chronicled in Dory Previns later solo recordings.

In the 60s Previn continued to divide his time between jazz and studio work but gradually his interest in classical music overtook these other fields. By the 70s he was established as one of...